


Having A Good Time

by brokenhighways



Category: Hit the Floor (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Coda, Friends With Benefits, M/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-13
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:26:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24141298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brokenhighways/pseuds/brokenhighways
Summary: Zero wakes up in Jude's bed and proceeds to freak out.
Relationships: Jude Kinkade/Zero | Gideon
Comments: 18
Kudos: 121
Collections: Hit The Floor ▶ Zero / Jude Kinkade, Zude





	Having A Good Time

**Author's Note:**

> Set between 2x09 and 2x10.

Sunlight pours through the window behind the bed, encasing the room in golden hues. Most people would revel in such a sight, but not Zero.

It means that he didn't sleep at home last night and the _only_ place he went was Jude's apartment. He knows this because it's the only place he ever goes, the one sanctuary he has in town.

" _You don't even know the guy."_

_"I'm about to."_

Zero groans inwardly, refusing to open his eyes until he's sure this isn't a dream. The images filtering through his mind can't be real because--

_Jude tries to sidestep past him and suddenly, he can't help himself. Before he can blink, they're kissing, grappling with each other almost violently, like something feral has erupted in both of them. Shirts come off and then it's skin on skin and---_

Zero finally cracks open an eye. The spot next to him is empty and the note on the extra pillow reads: _gone to work_. He breathes a sigh of relief, unsure on how to handle this.

He's _always_ had one basic rule, ever since he developed a knack of messing up whatever friendships he had. A sweet girl named Marissa who knew even more about basketball than he did who was the _perfect_ assistant. He slept with her, casually discarding her when she wanted more. That was closely followed by his manager, Rebecca, a _married_ woman who would have left her husband for him if he’d let her.

She didn’t take it well when he ended things and since then anyone that works for him has been off limits.

Except now.

_They stumble blindly to the bedroom while losing what's left of their clothes. Zero kisses Jude slower then, savoring the taste and smiling into it before he pushes him down onto the bed._

_"Bet you that Danny wouldn't do this."_

Zero's face flush when he sees his clothes in a neatly folded pile on top of Jude's dresser. There’s no denying it any longer. He _slept_ with Jude. Jude Kinkade. The guy that's always stressed, wound tighter than a screw. The _only_ person that has his back right now.

_He presses a trail of kisses down Jude's toned body, marveling at the stifled groans and the way vibrates in response to his touch._

"Way to go, Gideon," he mumbles. "Way to keep it in your fucking pants."

It's not his fault, no, it's _Danny's_ fault for having the nerve to ask Jude out. For unwittingly bringing out his jealous streak, a vicious burning urge to have Jude all to himself. It's Jelena's fault for screwing him over, for making him so vulnerable that Jude felt the need to kiss it better.

It's Jude's fault for taking up so much damn real estate in his head over the past few weeks.

_Jude looks gorgeous with his hair mussed up and face flushed red from exertion. When he pulls off, lips swollen and slick, all Zero wants is to kiss him._

_So he does._

The memory ends there and Zero convinces himself he's happy it didn't go further. What they did can easily be explained away. Tensions were high and they both needed release.

That's all it was.

+

Zero decides to pretend nothing happened and he returns to Jude's apartment the following evening with a case of beer and some pizzas in tow. They usually hang out, so it’s best to keep things normal. Stick to the routine and act like nothing’s changed.

There's a voice in his head warning him, but he does what he does best.

He ignores it.

To Jude's credit he opens up after the first knock, quickly disguising his visible apprehension with an awkward smile.

"Zero... I wasn't expecting to see you."

Of course he wasn't.

It's not like Zero answered any of his five calls and many messages. He’s spent much of the past twenty-four hours convincing himself to let Jude go before he screws things up the way he _always_ does.

Yet, here is because he’s a glutton for punishment.

"Where else am I going to go? Everybody hates me, remember?"

Jude closes the door behind him and smiles ruefully. "I don't hate you."

Zero sets the beer and pizza down and drops onto the couch. "Yeah...well, you're different."

Jude joins him, scooting away towards the opposite side like he'll erupt into flames if they touch each other. "I'm different?"

"You're not pretending to be someone that you're not. I like that about you."

"What else do you like about me?" Jude finally relaxes and just like that the tension snaps in half, allowing Zero to launch into his charm offensive. The one where his silver tongue runs away from him and he pulls Jude back into his messy storm.

Zero’s good at subterfuge, good at getting people to come back for more when he’s done nothing to deserve it.

"My compliment meter is out of quarters. I'm gonna need you to top it up before I dish out another one."

Jude’s lips curve into a smile. “I’m pretty sure that you owe me.”

“...and I’m pretty sure that closed mouths don’t get fed.”

Jude laughs, a soft rumble that warms Zero's chest. "You drive a hard bargain."

"Oh, it's more than hard."

Zero's aware that they're flirting, dancing around the elephant in the room and doing a bad job of it, but... it's like a dangerous game and he can't get enough.

"Shouldn't I be the judge of that?"

Zero swallows, heat starting to prickle along his back. "I don’t know. It might be too much for you to handle."

Jude's eyes track his throat before he meets his gaze. "I doubt that."

He doesn't know who moves first, all he knows is that - fifteen minutes later when his pants are around his ankles and he's got Jude bent over the couch - he's in _serious_ trouble.

+

They don't talk about it.

Outside of Jude’s apartment, everything is normal and all about basketball.

Indoors, teeth graze against skin, tongues clash against each other and Zero hits that sweet spot over and over again.

_One evening, their eyes lock and just like that Zero's transfixed, unable to look away until Jude bucks forward and spills his release over his chest._

_Afterwards, when Jude takes his hand, he doesn’t pull away. He holds on because he knows they won’t ever have this moment again, not now that his heart’s ringing in his chest, sounding off a million alarms screaming for him to escape before he’s trapped._

The next morning, they have perfunctory sex, nothing like the previous times because they both _know_. There's no running away from this, no more pretending. Zero rolls out of bed not long after it’s over and grabs his clothes, sensing Jude's unease before he says, "So that's it?"

"You seem pretty satisfied a minute ago," Zero tells him, the way he's told so many others before. This time it's different, though. He wishes he could take the words back.

"What are we doing?" Jude asks.

"Having a good time.” Zero makes sure to give Jude a cocky smirk, like he’s unaffected by this.

It’s a lie, but he’s not ready for the truth.

They’re having an _amazing_ time, but Zero will never admit to that. That would make it real and nothing about this is real. This is just a fantasy, a slice of what they could have, but Jude deserves better.

He deserves something genuine, something he can hold onto. Not the scattered ashes that Zero generally leaves in his wake.

Once again, Zero wonders how he's found himself in this position. About to let down someone he truly cares for because he's irrevocably broken due to a lifetime of disappointment. All he knows how to do is hurt people and he doesn't want that on his conscience.

Not when he’s been teetering on the edge for so long, wondering when he’s going to fall and shatter into pieces.

"You've done this? Had a good time with a guy before."

There’s an innocent note in Jude’s voice, a flash of wonder that makes Zero feel worse.

Still, he forces himself to chuckle at Jude's naivety. "I've been with men. And women. And men _and_ women. It's not deep, Jude, because I don't make it deep. I don't do relationships."

There's some talk about Jelena but Zero dismisses it. Truth be told, he doesn't care about her and he never did. He just forgot himself for a moment, got lost in the false sense of comfort she provided him.

"We can keep having fun," he tells Jude, who looks _crushed_ , like he's buried under the weight of Zero's words. "Or not. Up to you."

+

Later that night when Jude kisses him and mumbles,"let's keep having fun" - exhilaration runs rampant in Zero’s chest and he realizes that he's screwed.

Fun or not, this _is_ real and…he knows he's going to mess it all up.

He's just too selfish to walk away.

_Fin._

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you reading! Hope everyone is staying safe out there! ♡♡♡


End file.
